Outcarped

I stood there, tenkara rod in hand, and stared at the grass carp.

In all seriousness, it had to have been nearly four feet long. It’s back and tail were out of the water, and what was exposed of this creature was bigger than most trout I catch. I could see its mouth opening and closing from time to time. It looked like I could have fit my fist into its maw.

I made a cast to it, consciously suppressing the instinctive mental process of playing out the most likely scenarios. Many of these would result in a lost fly, a lost fish, or a broken rod.

Suddenly the line went tight. Not a slamming take like a bass, just a hard pull in the opposite direction. I set the hook and the water exploded. The carp did a 180-degree turn and sent splashes up onto the bank. However, the stimuli I was taking in with my eyes betrayed what I was feeling with my hands. The throbbing and tugging didn’t match up with the violent run I saw the carp take.

As quick as I set the hook and became very confused, I saw the sunfish surface. In hooking this panfish right in front of the carp, I spooked the much larger animal.

Upon releasing the (quite nice, actually) sunfish, I allowed the suppressed cognitive simulations to remind me that I was under-gunned and outmatched. That carp would have taken my seventeen feet of line and tippet in a direct angle away from me, and the rod would have snapped at any number of places.

read more

Gone Fishing: Wild


This morning I had about two hours before an appointment. Since said appointment is a fly fishing appointment, it seemed fitting that I “pre game” with some time on the water.

Driving from my home into the mountains, I passed dozens of great streams. I could have fished for early season bass. There were trout streams and ponds in a number of environments.

However, I wanted to fish somewhere wild.

It took a little longer to get there. Consequently, I didn’t get to fish as long as I’d like. And to be honest, that probably reduced the amount of fish that I caught.

But where I was, it was spectacular. Rugged cliffs, clean cold water, and I was all by myself.

I am not at the place in my life and/or fishing career where I can honestly say that I am “just about the experience.” I still want to catch trout, and big ones at that. From time to time, I do get glimpses of what fishing just for the experience is all about.

read more

Midges: Little Purchases that help Fishing Little Flies

Earlier I wrote a post on fly fishing midges. I mentioned some preliminary matters, general fly selection, and some important distinctive techniques. Today, as a follow up, I’d like to provide some greater detail regarding the gear and accessories that can really be helpful on the water when you’re fishing the smallest of flies.

Books

While you don’t need a book to get out and fish flies size 22 or smaller, having a comprehensive resource is going to be incredibly helpful. Midge Magic is an excellent, practical book on midges. Any of Ed Koch’s books on midges are worth reading. Patterns, leader formulas, and general tactics, when laid out in front of you on the printed page, are invaluable.

Boxes

You need to put your flies somewhere, obviously. And while any old box will work, it won’t work well for midges. In my experience, tiny dry fly hooks aren’t well suited for foam or silicone slots. Thus, compartment boxes are the way to go. Risen Fly makes a great little box that can do double-duty for midges. The covered compartments give the tiny flies security, and the sloped edges allow you to slide individual midges out. On the other half, the foam gives you a short-term drying option or space for a few larger bugs.

read more

Midges: The Big Deal of Fishing Little Flies

When I close my eyes and think of fly fishing, one of the most immediate images that comes to mind is a long, glassy pool. Across the surface there are intermittent dimples – sure indications of feeding fish. These riseforms come quickly, and sometimes in successive clusters. Some are larger, but most are smallish. The season of this scene is inconsequential, because the trout are rising to midges.

I am not sure if there is a certain size that a fly has to be to fall into the “midge” category. Some people think that a size 20 is small, but that is hardly a legitimate midge. Certain patterns are actually called midges, but tying that fly on a size 8 hook doesn’t keep it under that classification. Furthermore, I struggle with lumping chronomids and miniscule nymphs that are essentially tiny hooks wrapped in wire in with some of the more noble midges.

Again, this isn’t a very scientific observation. Truth be told, it probably isn’t even a good taxonomical approach to fly box sorting.

But there is just something about a delicate cast, a drag-free length of 7X tippet, and a microscopic dry fly being eaten by a trout.

Getting Started

There is a lot more to it than that, of course. “Yeah, like finding the **** things in my fly box!” you might say. Or, “giving myself an aneurysm from squinting and trying to get the spider-web-thin line through the microscopic hook eye!” I won’t argue that there are some real challenges in simply getting to the point of being able to fish size 26 or 28 flies. The tips-n’-tricks advice I have it to invest in a threader box. I don’t use one (yet) but they work like a charm.

read more

Last Cast of the Week: Virginia Fly Fishing and Wine Festival

Most Fridays on Casting Across are  devoted to other people’s contributions in the fly fishing community. Articles, pictures, social media accounts, videos, podcasts, products, and more will be featured on The Last Cast of the Week.

Today, I’m sharing  information on the Virginia Fly Fishing & Wine Festival.

If you’d like to be featured in the Last Cast of the Week, or have seen something that others might be interested in, use my contact form or shoot me an email (matthew[at]castingacross[dot]com). Also, be sure to subscribe to Casting Across to never miss a post.

***

Virginia Fly Fishing & Wine Festival

“Another fly fishing show?!?  It’s April – I should be fishing.”

A) If you live in the Mid-Atlantic, the past few weeks’ rain have probably brought most rivers to levels where fly fishing is going to be tricky this week.

B) This show is worth it.

Conveniently located off I95 , right outside of Richmond, this event keeps growing and growing.  The speaker list is extensive,  with names like Lefty Kreh, Bob Clouser, and  Dave Whitlock on the schedule. Seminar topics and vendors go way beyond the region; Maine, Cuba, and New Zealand are a few of the destinations that are highlighted.

A distinctive of the Virginia Fly Fishing & Wine Festival is that it is truly a family-oriented affair. The winery aspect is obvious, with a number of prominent vineyards attending. Additionally, this is probably the most “kid-friendly” show around. The local Trout Unlimited Youth Camp is holding family fly fishing classes,  Boy Scouts can earn merit badges, and kids can try their hand at fly tying.

read more

Fly Fishing for Coelacanth

I just want to say this up front: I don’t know if coelacanth is singular, plural, or both. For the sake of this post I’m going to assume that the obscurity of this fish is going to hide my ignorance.

Imagine catching a brook trout in an urban waterway in New York City. That would be impressive. You’d probably be shocked; maybe even think that someone played a trick on you. However, in the grand scheme of things it isn’t like char have been extirpated from Manhattan for that long. Less than four centuries ago there were big, hungry brookies swimming where skyscrapers and Starbucks abound today.

Now imagine catching something that has been thought to be gone for thousands of years. Not just gone from a stream, a region, or a continent. Extinct from the whole world. And not just for thousands of years, but for much longer.

Do that, and you might have a little bit of a notion as to how Marjorie Courtenay-Latimer felt when she found herself looking at a freshly harvested coelacanth. You know, the fish that is related to lungfishes and tetrapods. More significantly, the fish that the scientific establishment heartily believed had been extinct since the Cretaceous. You know, supposedly 66 million years ago.

I wonder if anyone lost their job or had some accolades posthumously removed after that little blunder. “By ‘extinct for 66 million years,’ what I really meant was ‘I didn’t look off the coast of South Africa… or Indonesia.’ My bad. At least I wasn’t the guy who thought that gorillas were a myth!”

read more

4 of the Last Places You’d Look for Fish

Never forget that fish can live virtually anywhere.

Specifically, within a lake or river environment, you can find a fish in almost any place. There are some stereotypical spots that most fly fishers concentrate on: the big plunge pools, undercut banks, deep riffles. Those are all incredibly productive areas that deserve your attention.

However, in pressured fisheries or during a period of high/low flows a lot can be gained from probing some varied sections of a stream. Here are four types of water that might deserve a few casts the next time you head out:

Skinny Riffles

By nature, moving water creates sort of an optical illusion. We almost always think it is shallower than it really is. Shallow riffles, in particular, can look like nothing more than inches of water rushing over rocks. In reality, inches are all that a fish needs to hold and feed. Think of the size of trout that can sit in six inches of water and stay completely submerged! Furthermore, just because a wide swath of the riffle is four or five-inches deep doesn’t mean that there aren’t some deeper depressions that make perfect lies for fish.

read more

Last Cast of the Week, 3/31/2017

Most Fridays on Casting Across are  devoted to other people’s contributions in the fly fishing community. Articles, pictures, social media accounts, videos, podcasts, products, and more will be featured on The Last Cast of the Week.

Today, I’m sharing items from Unaccomplished Angler, Project Healing Waters, & Fly Punk.

If you’d like to be featured in the Last Cast of the Week, or have seen something that others might be interested in, use my contact form or shoot me an email (matthew[at]castingacross[dot]com). Also, be sure to subscribe to Casting Across to never miss a post.

***

Unaccomplished Angler – March of the Lion

Kirk Werner lives in the Pacific Northeast. According to his blog, the Unaccomplished Angler, it rains a lot there. Who knew? I live in the  MidAtlantic, which has been subject to its second consecutive low-precipitation  winter/spring. I digress, as comparing rain gauges is juvenile. What is entertaining is reading Kirk’s take on the month of March. His blog (along with his various other projects) are absolutely  worth checking out and following.

Project Healing Waters Quantico – Fly Tying Marathon

Certainly you’re aware of Project Healing Waters. The program is a remarkable opportunity to literally save lives through fly fishing. The Quantico group puts on an annual fly tying marathon at the National Museum of the Marine Corps. It took place earlier this month, but there are plenty of pictures, stories, and links to more information on their Facebook page. Even if you don’t live anywhere near Eastern Virginia, there is a PHW chapter near you that is doing great work for our veterans.

 

Fly Punk – Online Magazine

“This is not your normal fly fishing magazine.” Well, if that doesn’t interest you I don’t know what will. I won’t give away too much, because trying to explain or describe  an entire vehicle for content delivery is probably futile. Just know that what you’ll be reading are articles and stories from people who are telling the reasons why they fish. Not necessarily how or where, but what makes that experience important to them. Oh, and its free!

read more

Woolly Brothers: Beards in Fly Fishing

Every now and again on Casting Across I share information about a product or a company in fly fishing. The goal is usually to tell a story. It is either the story behind a piece of gear, a business, or my experience utilizing something on the water. I’m happy to share these stories, and make recommendations to those who read.

Today, I’m sharing a totally different kind of product! After walking around some fly fishing shows this winter, I realized that there is a certain look in the community these days. Sure, there are logo hats, flannels, and the occasional tucked-into-the-jeans Columbia shirt. But the one feature that transcended all ages was facial hair.

I’m talking beards, lots of beards. There are even multiple beard-centric social media fly fishing icons.

I’ve worn a beard a few times in my life. These days, I’m taking it a little more seriously: for my own benefit and that of my lady (surprisingly, she isn’t a fan of beardruff). I started using beard oil to keep things a little cleaner and more tidy. My brand of choice is Yukon’s Beard. After seeing the sea of beards among anglers this past season, I talked to Tony Denham, the proprietor of Yukon’s Beard, to get his take on the phenomenon:

 

Generally, why has facial hair – big beards, in particular – experienced a resurgence in our culture?

There isn’t a singular reason that big beards are making a resurgence in our culture. I believe it is due to multiple causes that have set in motion the trend we’re seeing today. It’s not simply a clean-cut matter (pun intended).

The past decade we’ve even seen traditional corporate America being challenged by Gen Xers and Millennials who don’t want to conform to conventional preferences that hold back their creativity. The corporate “dress code” of the suit and tie is transitioning to jeans and an untucked shirt. With this, the face of man has changed. Sporting a beard brings the essence of wilderness, adventure, and the free-spirit into the workplace. I also think the resurgence of the beard is an affirmation of men who want to express their masculinity in a culture where the lines between gender are becoming blurred.

 

As a beard expert, what does the image of the bearded angler say about the man and the sport?

Whenever I think of an angler I always envision an older gray haired man with a full beard; sporting his hat and rain gear. He has a pipe dangling from his mouth, maintaining it with one hand while he carries a rod and reel in his other. Where I get this image from I’m not quite sure! However, I see the bearded angler as a symbol of time, perseverance, and character. He is a man who boldly faces the elements.

read more

A Good Day Not Fly Fishing

Fly fishers the world over celebrate the arrival of spring. Even those who grind through the winter months look forward to the warmer weather, increase in insect activity, and expanded opportunities to catch fish.

If you haven’t noticed, everyone else also wants to get outside with the onset of spring. Even non-fly fishers. Even the non-outdoorsy. Even your family.

Sometimes, those three categories are one and the same. The wife and kids want to take advantage of the pleasant weather by taking a nature walk and get outside. This is a perfectly reasonable request. Even bears, who get to sleep all winter, choose to spend their cooped-up time separated from loved ones.

This first weekend in spring was beautiful in the Mid-Atlantic region. Sunny, 70s, and not a cloud in the sky. Perfect weather for fly fishing. Bugs would be hatching: stoneflies, some early caddis, and bunches of midges would all be buzzing around the sun-warmed water. The fish have already been active this season, so they would be completely receptive to a well-presented offering.

Or, I could take a nature walk.

Let me be clear: I have it good. My wife and boys love being outside. My leash for things like fly fishing is longer than I deserve. I’m blessed to the point where I certainly can’t complain about a nature walk; even in lieu of a great day for fishing.

So, we took a nature walk.

read more